Various electronic devices such as computers and mobile phones are powered by regulated DC power sources. A power conversion circuit is used as, for example, a DC-to-DC converter that charges/discharges a capacitor by a switching operation of transistors to convert a high voltage input from a battery or another power source into a predetermined output voltage.
As electronic devices become smaller, lighter and more compact, the size and the performance of the dedicated power conversion circuits need to be improved. Increasing the switching frequency of the power conversion circuit has been one of the primary solutions provided to reduce the size and the cost of the large passive components. However, as the switching frequency of the power conversion circuit increases, the switching losses increase too.
Furthermore, the power handling performance is usually limited to the spec of the resonant components (e.g., capacitors and inductors) used in the power conversion circuit. When the size of the resonant components is reduced, the power handling performance of the power conversion circuit may be deteriorated. That is, there is a trade-off relationship between the switching frequency and the power handling performance of the power conversion circuit.